Health, trading standards, local authority and enforcement organisations across the region, as well as in the neighbouring North East and North West, are working to remove smuggled or counterfeit cigarettes and tobacco.
The North of England Tackling Illicit Tobacco for Better Health programme was officially launched in Leeds by Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families Ed Balls.<br><br>Almost nine out of 10 of people who took part in a new survey agreed that children and young people are most at risk because they can buy easily and cheaply from unscrupulous dealers. And over six out of 10 thought that those who deal in illicit tobacco bring crime into local communities.<br><br>Now steps are being taken by partners in the North of England Tackling Illicit Tobacco for Better Health action plan to share intelligence, systems and technology, and introduce new ways of working to reduce the supply of and demand for these lethal products. <br><br>“Tackling Illicit Tobacco for Better Health is a groundbreaking initiative which I hope will have a major impact on communities across the North of England, “ said the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families.” Illicit tobacco ruins lives and although from 1 October 2007 it became illegal to sell tobacco to young people under the age of 18, too many young people still have access to smuggled and counterfeit tobacco."<br><br>Dr Cathy Read, Consultant in Public Health, NHS Yorkshire & the Humber said: “We have made great progress in reducing smoking rates, but one in five deaths in the region is related to smoking. Smuggled and counterfeit tobacco is usually half the price of genuine products and it encourages people to keep smoking.<br><br>“Dealers don’t care who they sell to, including young people. It provides a easily accessible source of cigarettes for children and young people who are finding it more difficult to buy from news agents and off-licences since the legal buying age was raised to 18.”<br><br>An estimated 70m cigarettes and 10 tonnes of illegal tobacco were seized in Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) operations in Yorkshire and Humberside in 2008/09, and increased joint working with trading standards officers is already producing results.<br><br>New Inland Detection Teams have been set up by HMRC, and manager for the Yorkshire and Humberside, Enid Dobson, said: “We are fully committed to supporting the North of England illicit tobacco plan. Together with local health and community workers, council officers and the police we are developing co-ordination and enforcement plans to tackle tobacco smuggling and smoking prevalence.<br><br>“The Yorkshire & Humber region is a hotspot for illicit tobacco trade and we see this as a very real and serious issue within local communities. We have specialist resources dedicated to help combat the problem and our highly trained officers will continue to target traders and individuals who illegally sell duty free or counterfeit tobacco products.<br><br>“We want to encourage people in the community to help us stop this activity – if you know of someone in your area who sells illicit tobacco goods, from their home, workplace or retail outlet you can pass this information to us by phoning the Customs Hotline on 0800 59 5000 or through the website www.hmrc.gov.uk<br> <br>Tony Downham, Trading Standards’ lead for illicit tobacco for Yorkshire and the Humber, said: “We are really increasing our ability to wage war on this trade which has links to organised crime as well as creating health risks.<br><br>“Our new regional intelligence and enforcement teams of trading standards professionals are sitting alongside and working with their HMRC colleagues to drastically reduce the supply of this tobacco."<br><br>Background<br><br>The public opinion survey consisted of over 6,000 telephone and street interviews carried out by NEMS market research in July 2009 for the partners in the North of England Tackling Illicit Tobacco for Better Health programme. Agencies involved in the development of the programme include regional public health organisations (including Smokefree North West, Fresh (Smokefree North East), and Smokefree Yorkshire & the Humber), trading standards groups, HM Revenue and Customs, local authorities, the Association of Chief Police Officers, local police forces, the Serious and Organised Crime Agency and the newly formed UK Border Agency.
Meanwhile Employers across the East Midlands will start to receive hard hitting publicity material this week in a bid by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to raise awareness of the real problems of illegal tobacco sales taking place in some of the regions factories and warehouses
Employers across the East Midlands are to receive publicity material in a bid by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to raise awareness of the real problems of illegal tobacco sales taking place in some of the region’s factories and warehouses.
The campaign asks for the business community to be on guard against this serious crime which could be taking place on their premises. Intelligence gained by Customs officers shows that colleagues in the workplace are a key supplier of illicit cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco in the East Midlands.
Keith Morgan, Detection Manager for HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) said: “These individuals create demand for cheap tobacco among their co-workers by selling cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco at what appears to be a bargain price. However, the startling truth is these products are not simply ‘duty free‘ goods brought back from holiday. They are often counterfeit and as with any fake product individuals don’t know exactly what they are buying. It’s a gamble as to what counterfeit tobacco products may contain – a bet I wouldn’t recommend. Tests on previous smuggled hauls of cigarettes seized in the UK have revealed about half are counterfeit. They are usually manufactured in back-street or underground factories, mainly in China, making it impossible to regulate what goes into them. They can contain higher levels of toxins and some have even been found to include sawdust, rat droppings and dead insects.”
He added: “This isn’t a victimless crime. These sales chains often link straight through to organised crime gangs. The profits they make end up being ploughed into other forms of criminality such as drug smuggling and violent crime.”
Customs officers in the East Midlands in the last year have made a number of seizures of cigarettes, hand rolling tobacco, private vehicles and cash. In all these cases the companies concerned took disciplinary action against the individuals involved including dismissal in some cases.
However, companies can face fines of up to £5,000, along with damage to their reputation, if they allow their premises to be used for illegal tobacco trading or fail to take steps to guard against it.
HMRC is keen to work with businesses against crime. Individuals with information relating to illegally imported goods or tax evasion and fraud are encouraged to contact the Customs Hotline on 0800 59 5000 or online at http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/customs-hotline/email or [email protected]
The campaign is supported by the Department of Health – East Midlands who are appealing to employers to actively promote options to their workforce on how to give up smoking altogether by calling 0800 055 62 26.
Andrew Head, Regional Tobacco Policy Manager for the Department of Health East Midlands, added: “As well as clamping down on illegal sales, businesses should also look at encouraging their employees to stop smoking. Setting up stop smoking groups in the workplace is just one idea that would not only improve employees’ health, but will also boost productivity as smoking breaks will decrease along with smoking-related illnesses. It needs to be stressed that smoking any kind of cigarette, whether shop-bought or illicit, is harmful to health. If people are looking to save money then it will better for all if they seek out the stop smoking assistance provided by the NHS and save money that way, rather than use apparently cheaper tobacco alternatives.”
